Fast & Furious Fires Up Record $72.5 Million!

The ComingSoon.net Box Office Report has been updated with studio estimates for the weekend. Click here for the full box office estimates of the top 12 films and then check back on Monday for the final figures based on actual box office.

Universal Pictures’ Fast & Furious destroyed the previous April opening record, earning an estimated $72.5 million from 3,461 theaters for a massive average of $20,950 per site. The previous record holder was Anger Management, which opened to $42.2 million in 2003. Made for about $85 million, the reunion of Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster is the best opening of 2009 so far. The Justin Lin-directed film has made $30.1 million internationally as well, bringing its worldwide total to $102.6 million. The 2001 original The Fast and the Furious opened to $40.1 million. It was followed by 2 Fast 2 Furious in 2003 with an opening of $50.5 million, and 2006’s The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (also directed by Lin), which brought in $24 million its first weekend. Their respective totals were $144.5 million, $127.1 million and $62.5 million, so Fast & Furious has already surpassed “Tokyo Drift’s” total earnings!

In second place, DreamWorks Animation’s Monsters vs. Aliens dropped a moderate 43.5% in ticket sales its second weekend, adding $33.5 million for a total of $105.7 million. The 3D animated film was made for about $175 million.

Lionsgate’s The Haunting in Connecticut came in at No. 3 with $9.6 million. The horror-thriller has collected $37.2 million in two weeks.

Alex Proyas’ sci-fi thriller Knowing added $8.1 million in fourth place and has reached $58.2 million after three weeks of release.

The Paul Rudd and Jason Segel comedy I Love You, Man earned another $7.9 million in fifth place and has made a total of $49.3 million in three weeks.